George Friedman on America's Real Iran Goals: Regime Change or Regional Reset?

George Friedman on America's Real Iran Goals: Regime Change or Regional Reset?

March 2, 2026 · 43 min

About this episode

George Friedman joins host Christian Smith to discuss the implications of the US-Israeli strikes on Iran and the future of the Iranian regime.

The ongoing US-Israeli strikes on Iran, which began over the weekend, come after a protracted period of tension, negotiations and military build-up. Tehran has now said it will attack U.S. assets in the region in response to the U.S. and Israeli strikes, which killed several top Iranian officials and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. So why, in a world where the U.S. is trying to withdraw from anything outside the Western Hemisphere, does the U.S. still care about Iran? Talking Geopolitics host Christian Smith is joined by GPF Chairman George Friedman to discuss how we got here, intelligence failures, and the future of the Iranian regime, which could look quite different or remain just a new version of the same. Visit www.geopoliticalfutures.com for world-class geopolitical analysis and discussion, and to access our full 2026 Forecast: Re-anchoring the World.

People in this episode

Host: Christian Smith

Guest: George Friedman

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Mentioned in this episode

Places: Iran, U.S., Israel

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